Debris found on North Carolina beach is from SpaceX rocket

OCRACOKE ISLAND, N.C. -- A large sheet of metal found on a North Carolina beach has been identified as debris from a SpaceX rocket.

The National Park Service told The Charlotte Observer that Elon Musk's rocket building company confirmed the 10-foot by 6-foot (3-metre by 2-metre) debris found Sunday was "rocket hardware." Chief Ranger Boone Vandzura of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore says "it's being handled appropriately."

This isn't the first time chunks of a SpaceX rocket has been found on an Outer Banks beach. Last October, a 15-foot (4.5-metre) long section of a jettisoned nose cone was found near Hatteras Village.

With Sunday's Ocracoke Island find, the type of rocket and its launch date wasn't released.

The Outer Banks were hit by Hurricane Florence and Tropical Storm Michael, which caused flooding that can wash debris ashore.